Jose Altuve, The Greatest Astros Player Ever, Isn’t Defined By Passing Jeff Bagwell — It’s His Humble Championship Heart

It happens in Colorado on a Wednesday night in July, and as usual with Jose Altuve, it impacts winning. Hit number 2315 propels Altuve past Jeff Bagwell, making him the owner of the second most hits in the history of the Houston Astros. In truth, Altuve’s always been one of one though. The Greatest Astro Ever.

2315 is an awfully impressive number. Even more so in this age of baseball. “He got a lot of hits,” Altuve says of Bagwell, his remarks broadcast on Space City Home Network. “I got one more than him right now.”

2315 is a whole lot of hits. But it’s not the number that defines Jose Altuve. That’s the two world championships, the four World Series the Astros have been to, the now 52-34 record of this year’s injury-riddled team.

Jose Altuve makes so much winning possible, helps it grow like a gardener loving over his zucchini. The rightfully-lauded Astros culture of this Golden Era of Houston baseball has a lot to do with Altuve. He sets the unselfish tone that everyone else follows. The short second baseman turned outfielder with the giant heart’s humble nature spreads. It reaches almost everyone he’s teammates with for even a relatively short length of time.

The Altuve Affect is real.

Altuve doesn’t just help his teammates believe. He helps them care about each other. Seeing Altuve always put the team above himself makes everyone else buy into doing the same. The Greatest Astro Ever is always one of the most humble professional athletes ever. Altuve’s brilliant career has been filled with instances where he went above and beyond to make a kid happy, gifting one of his bats after a home run, spending extra time to sign autographs or share a genuine moment with a fan.

Even in a moment that finally should be about him, with seemingly every single one of his teammates screaming to make sure he gets the ball from hit number 2315, Altuve tries to make it about others too.

It’s always been about the moments more than the numbers with Jose Altuve. The three home run game to kick off those forever-franchise-changing 2017 playoffs. Followed by a walkoff home run in the 10th inning the next game. The home run that walked off the New York Yankees, drove Aroldis Chapman mad and sent Houston to the 2019 World Series. That beyond clutch home run in Arlington in the 2023 American League Champion Series.

When the Astros need him most, Altuve’s made a career of coming through. He’s anything but a compiler. Astros fans don’t love Jose Altuve for the numbers he’s put up. They love him for everything he’s done and who he is. But when you’re still making an impact 15 seasons in, you’re going to have built up some numbers.

Now, 2315. . . and counting. With even more memories than that.

“I think at this point everything means a lot,” Altuve says in Denver. “Getting hits is not easy. Every time I get one, and every time I get some milestone or something like that, I just get really happy. And excited, motivated to keep doing it.

“So I think they all mean a lot to me.”

To every true Astros fan too.

Still, even in a moment that finally should be about him, with seemingly every single one of his teammates screaming to make sure he gets the ball from hit number 2315, Altuve tries to make it about others too. He throws praise on the man he passed, talks about how much Jeff Bagwell has helped him. Gets into all the texts and advice the beloved Astros great gave him. Jose Altuve makes sure everyone knows how much Bagwell really cares.

The Astros’ heart and soul cannot help himself. The all-time greatest culture setter in Houston professional sports isn’t about to rest until more guys than him get their flowers. That’s Jose Altuve.

The Greatest Astro Ever. The Most Humble Super Leader too.